And then there was 3!

Our little Harley is getting so big! She is already 5 weeks old and growing so fast. Yesterday we weighed her in at 9.6 pounds. We've had a great first month with her. The first week it was nice to relax a little with just Harley. My parents took Rian and Gunnar to Vernal for the week (which they absolutely loved) so that I could just enjoy our new baby. Then, we traveled out to Vernal the next Friday to pick them up. It was a little bit crazy when we got there, as we have never left Gunnar overnight anywhere. He had a bit of abandonment issues...and the crying commenced! It was kind of funny, because he was fine the entire week until I got there. Its good to know that I am loved and was missed. Thanks Mom and Dad for playing with them all week!

This big brother sure loves his sister!

Sisters!

Once we were back at home it took a few days (or weeks) to get into a good routine that made everyone happy. Mostly just me. Luckily, Harley has been an alright sleeper-usually sleeping for 3 or 4 hours at a time. I have also learned to give Rian and Gunnar constructive activities during the day to keep them busy and lots of outside playtime. Even with the newly added chaos, I know that they both love their little sister so much. Harley is showered with kisses nonstop (Gunnar makes the cutest kissing sound now too) and both Rian and Gunnar want to hold her and give her loves (hugs) all day long. All in all, we are adjusting to our new addition quite well and loving every minute with Harley!

Our little princess Harley

An August 27th Birth Day

When I woke up and realized that my water had broken while I was sleeping, I had that immediate nervous feeling of excitement. Our baby girl was coming today! It was Birth Day! I woke John up with a "want to have a baby today?" although it took him a minute to realize that I was serious. I took immediate action and started gathering the rest of the stuff on my hospital bag checklist. Then I placed a call to my sister Cassy to see if she would babysit Rian and Gunnar. Luckily I caught her at home, because they were leaving to Salt Lake for a family reunion a few hours later. Her husband came and picked up our kids which was a huge lifesaver for us. After another phone call to my Parents, I finished getting ready and we were off to the hospital by 11 am.


Once we arrived at the hospital and checked in, I learned that my OB Doctor Hartman was out of town. I was really nervous about this, because I had a previously bad experience with the particular OB that was now going to be delivering my baby. I just had to go with it. I kept telling myself, "It's going to be okay, he just has to catch the baby, right??"  We started walking the halls to hopefully induce some contractions. (as I was not having any at this time.) The first time the nurse actually checked me I was already at a 4+ and 80% effaced. I told her that once I got to 6 it was pretty much a done deal, so she prepped the room 'just in case'. Then, an hour later I was still at a 5. She told me if I didn't do anything soon they would give me pitocin (which I really didn't want). At 3:30 or so, my parents had made it to the hospital (which was a huge surprise, because they had to drive 3 1/2 hrs to get there.) So my Mom and I started REALLY walking the halls. My Dad and John were watching TV in the waiting area, so we could wave at them between each lap. 


I had a stop watch on my phone we used to time the contraction intervals and to see how long it was taking us to make a lap around the hallway. They were 3 1/2 minutes apart and never got any closer. I really thought they would be giving me the pitocin.  I didn't feel like walking anymore, so we opted to go back to the room. To my surprise, the next hour when they checked me I was at an 6! The nurse said that she would notify the Dr. so he could be on his way. I think I had 2 more contractions and then I pushed the call button to tell the nurse I was having A LOT of pressure. (I told my Mom at this point that I thought she should go and get John from the waiting room so he didn't miss the birth of our daughter.) The Nurse checked me again and I was at an 8+ and 100 % effaced. The nurses all went into motion prepping for the delivery and the Dr. still wasn't there. The nurse then called in another nurse, just in case the Dr. didn't make it in time. I was very pleased by the nurses this time around. They were all aware that I was planning a natural childbirth and were very encouraging. One of the nurses looked me in the eye and said to me, "Do not worry. I CAN deliver your baby!" Although, not a minute later, Dr. Marriott came walking in in shorts and a ball cap.


The delivery went rather quickly and thanks to an awesome Dr. (despite my previous encounter), I had a 100% natural delivery with no episiotomy or stitches. At 6:26 pm, our baby girl was here and she was beautiful!  We named her Harley Jordan Pace (after my brother Jordan). She was 6 pounds 10 ounces and 18 inches. My parents came in just a few minutes later while the nurses weighed and cleaned up our sweet girl. I was so glad they could be here for this special day. Happy Birth Day Harley!

Mommy and Me 

 6 pounds 10 ounces

 Harley all cleaned up

 Loves from big brother Gunnar

 Big Sister Rian and Grandma Millett holding Harley.

 First photo with Mom and Dad

Harley Jordan Pace

Harley Jordan Pace

August 27th, 2011, 6:26 p.m.

6 lbs 10 oz, 18 inches long

1952 Dresser Re-Creation

Only 2 months after I purchased this 1952 dresser at DI, it's finally finished! I love how it turned out and in case you didn't know, I have 2 nightstands that match too! (one I purchased and one I previously refinished to match). So here is the big reveal!

 The only before picture I took (with my cell) so it's not the best. 

Sanding the drawers and dresser took forever because of all the shellac varnish on it and due to the rainy weather. Then we primed everything and got the drawers painted.

Primed and ready for paint.

  

I love this aqua color!

After the entire dresser was painted, I took some ebony stain and brushed it over everything. Then I took a rag and wiped off as much stain as I could. So it's mostly aqua with a touch of black. Then I put a clear coat on that for a finished product! Hooray!!

I finally ordered the knobs from hobby lobby! I waited about a month for the knobs to go on sale 50% off.

If you didn't notice, I still need to figure out the knob base for the top drawer. It doesn't quite fit under the keyhole, but for now it works without (that is a job for John to figure out).

And now for the final product reveal...

I love how it turned out! It was a long time coming, but totally worth it in the end. All I need now, is a black headboard/footboard for my king sized bed.

Pregnancy Update!

32 weeks and Counting! I've made it through the most critical part of the pregnancy. What a relief that is! (Mostly that means that if the baby had any medical problems now, they would be the same problems at 40 weeks.) Of coarse the further you make it the better, now baby just needs to keep growing as much as she can. I've been going to weekly appointments for the last month and a half or so to have my cervix measured, and to check on the baby. Everything has been looking really good. So I will skip an appointment next week and have another one on Aug. 1. My goal now is to make it past August 14th. (that will be the longest I've ever been pregnant.) But only time will tell that. Here are a few pictures from my last couple appointments. My 31 week appointment was really fun. I left the kids with a babysitter (unfortunately John was in meetings so he couldn't come either) and since Dr. Hartman was out of town, I met with the ultrasound tech. It was probably the best appointment I've had thus far. She checked my cervix and did all of the fun 3D pictures again. And add that to an appointment without kids...Awesome! So enjoy our little Harley! (do you think she looks like my other kids?)

 Look how little my arm is! And such a cute face!!

 This one is a close up of her face.

Also sending out loves from big brother Gunnar and big sister Rian! They just love Harley!!

Johnson Family Pictures

I had promised my friends I would take some pictures of them before they had their first baby. We had a lot of fun and I think we got some great shots. Although, I realized that I am definitely out of practice and I forgot how much time it takes to edit photos! But, all in all, it was a great photo session. Enjoy the pictures!

28 weeks and Bed Rest!!

I went to my Dr. appointment last Tuesday June 14th. At this appointment I was 27 weeks and 3 days . I have been doing Fetal Fibronectin tests every two weeks the past few months, as a precaution because I have had two preterm babies already. My doctor always assured me that I most likely would never have a positive test, but we needed to be cautious until the baby was 31 weeks or so. (the most critical weeks for an early baby). So we did the test, a vaginal ultrasound to check my cervix (thick and closed!), then a stomach ultrasound (mostly for fun) to see the baby. So I left feeling really good and thinking that everything was great. It was just 2 hours later that I received a phone call from Dr. Hartman saying my Fetal Fibronectin test (FFn) had come back positive! I couldn't believe it!

{Fetal fibronectin is a protein that acts as a "glue" during pregnancy, attaching the amniotic sac — the fluid-filled membrane that cushions your baby in the uterus — to the lining of the uterus. Fetal fibronectin is often present in cervical secretions during early pregnancy. Fetal fibronectin also shows up later in pregnancy, about one to three weeks before labor begins. If your health care provider is concerned about preterm labor, he or she may test a swab from your cervical canal for the presence of fetal fibronectin. A positive fetal fibronectin test is a clue that the "glue" has been disturbed and you're at increased risk of preterm labor.}  

Because it came back positive I had a few things I needed to do. First, go to the hospital that night to get a Steroid shot. Then return the next day to get a 2nd dose of the same thing. This helps the baby's lungs develop faster. He told me he could possibly put me in the hospital, but that it wasn't an emergency so if I didn't want to, I didn't have to. So of coarse I said, "no thanks".  He told me from then on, I had to be on bed rest where I was laying down at least 6 hours a day. Yikes! That seems almost impossible with two kiddos at home. I'm still working on figuring out a good daily schedule for all of us, so that I can still be a good parent, but also get the rest that I'm supposed to get. It's been about 5 days now, and I've probably watched a good 20+ episodes of a TV show called 'Psych'. I've also packed a hospital bag for myself in the event that I do get hospitalized. I have another appointment tomorrow so we will see what that brings. Mostly we are just hoping that this little girl isn't too anxious to get here. We will happily wait another few months to see you!!

It's a Girl!

So this post is definitely long overdue. We found out at around 18 weeks that we are expecting a baby GIRL!! We didn't want to get our hopes one way or another until our 'big' ultrasound that was done at 21 weeks. Which then it was confirmed-definitely a girl! I am so excited to be able to finally use the millions of baby girl clothes we have been saving from Rian. We are due sometime in September between the 3rd and the 11th. (The baby measures the 11th.) But if you know me at all, you will remember that both of my other two kiddos decided to come a month early. Don't be surprised if you see Baby Girl Pace sometime in August. So hopefully baby stays in as long as possible, but I have learned to be prepared by 35 weeks. I am at 27 weeks right now, so that doesn't give me much time. We are so excited to have this new addition come into our family!! Here are some ultrasound pictures of our little peanut...

 our little angel

 3D Ultrasound-what a cutie!

It's a GIRL!!

Hello Granite Counter Tops!

After getting bids from 3 different companies we decided to go with Precision Granite. They had the best price for better material. We are so happy with our decision and love it! Here is the final remodel...

These first two pictures are just after the installation. So there isn't hardware on the sink yet.

Finally finished! It took about two weeks start to finish. (once we made the decision on what company we were going with.)

John and Jody installed the sink hardware and the disposal the next evening.

This sink is awesome! It is a single basin, under mount stainless sink. It's 9 in deep, but seems like double from what we had before. Both of the kids have bathed in it and love it. Gunnar can lay out head to toe and barely touch the sides. And it was included in our bid, sweet!

Love the color! It's going to look great with all my rooster decorations!

I had to add this picture because John decided to move the curtain up about a foot from it's original location, and also installed the window seal. Now we just have to paint and decorate!